Institute sets 32,000 members goal for 2002

CIPS enters the new year with a target to boost its membership to 32,000 after a successful major recruitment drive in 2001.

Membership passed the 30,000 milestone at the end of October and stands at 30,800 this month. CIPS intends to maintain recruitment momentum, according to Chris Gallagher, the institute's director of membership development.

He said: "We had a record year for growth last year, when we gained more than 3,000 new members. The best we had before this in any year was 1,200, and we are now in the big league of professional institutes."

Gallagher put the growth down to three factors. The first is greater recognition by the public and private sectors that qualified purchasers make a big difference to profitability. Second, CIPS is making greater efforts at personal contact with lapsed members and attained a 35 per cent membership renewal rate.

Lastly, CIPS has increased its overseas recruitment efforts, with visits to branches in several African countries in the past 12 months.